Get ready – summer is finally here. It’s a great relief for all Kapha people, as they will get to enjoy the nice weather without any risk of allergies. No cold, cough, or sneezing! But for Pitta people, it may be a difficult season, as they need to adapt to increasing heat. As summer begins, everyone will be ready to start grilling with lots of spicy food and oily treats. But this type of food – red meat, spicy sauce, tomatoes, etc. serve to aggravate pitta. Commonly, people show signs of increased gastric acidity, burning sensation in stomach, increased acne, skin rashes, some times burning sensation while urinating, and exhaustion. All these symptoms will indicate increased pitta in the body. Pitta is hot, sharp, light and oily in nature. Taste like sour, salty & pungent will aggravate pitta. To balance this or to cope up with this change, try to eat foods with cooling properties. Sweet, astringent, and bitter foods will reduce the pitta. Spices like cumin, coriander, fennel, mint, basil and cardamom, saffron will help to reduce pitta. Similarly, fruits like melons, watermelons, grapes, and coconut are the best. Drink plenty of fluids, water, coconut water, fruit juices, and cucumber water. Simple Lifestyle changes to beat the heat: • Keep the body cool, use sandalwood water, rose water for bath • Apply sandalwood paste or powder on body • Avoid excessive physical exercise • Enjoy moonlight in the night • Wear gems like pearls, coral • Stay in cool places, avoid exposure to sun • Take bath(s) with cold water, wear light dresses • Go for a soothing walk, in the evening, near the beach or river Happy Summer Solstice!

Picture yourself after you wake up in the morning. What is the first thing you think of before you even get out of bed? That freshly brewed coffee or shot of espresso? Or that bowl of oatmeal or crisp bacon and egg? This is how most people start their day – thinking about food. Come to think of it, there are some people who are thinking about what they would eat for their next meal, even as they are eating. And that is how their lives revolve around food. They essentially live to eat.

An attitude like this drives all rational thoughts out of the mind; people stop caring about health and do not recognize true hunger from habitual or compulsive eating. For people with this behavior, the mindset of living to eat is the root cause of many chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and other cardiovascular diseases.

Some people turn to food when they get upset. These people try to find love or peace or comfort in food. This attitude facilitates ignoring one's worries for some time and stimulates the reward system in the brain to achieve instant gratification. When this behavior becomes repetitive, emotional eating culminates in a myriad of health issues. Not surprisingly, all comfort foods are sweet, moist, unctuous or oily. Common examples include ice cream, chocolates, cakes and cookies, macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, and pizza. Processed sugars, high fat, and high sodium in these foods are deleterious to health.

The human body is an amazing instrument that gives us appropriate signals throughout the day. One only needs to be vigilant to understand what the body is trying to say. The body tells us about hunger, thirst, tiredness and sleep; when we start listening to these signals, we become more aware of our body and mind. We become more in touch with our inner self. Total awareness of one's inner self or soul is what a yogi achieves. And that is the ultimate goal of yoga.Changing one's attitude to “Eat to Live” can lead one along the path of health and happiness!